Abstract Finland has a robust history in international peacekeeping extending from UN operations in the Middle East to nato -led missions in the Balkans and Afghanistan. Finland’s participation in international peacekeeping operations has been informed by the country’s foreign and security policy that has evolved from Cold War neutrality to recent nato -membership. Current geopolitical changes, including Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, have redefined the Finnish security environment. It is topical to assess the drivers underlying Finnish peacekeeping policy and consider the future of Finnish peacekeeping. This study finds that, overall, Finnish participation has provided an important framework for integration with the country’s West European peers as well as for strengthening its transatlantic relations, especially after the end of the Cold War. Finland can be expected to continue to strengthen security cooperation based on aligned security interests on both a bilateral and multilateral basis within and beyond the nato framework. These pursuits will also inform future Finnish participation in international peacekeeping and other military crisis management.

Abstract This article examines the continuities and changes in Ethiopian peacekeeping practices since its inception in the early 1950s to the present. It focuses on how international operations have interacted with historical, structural and ideational factors to shape Ethiopia’s involvement. Drawing on archival sources, policy papers, and media material as well as interviews with officials in Ethiopia, it singles out four distinct periods that have influenced Ethiopia’s participation in peacekeeping mission. It shows that all were characterised by the interplay between geopolitical factors, regional developments in Africa and domestic political changes. By identifying the major shifts in Ethiopia’s foreign policy orientation and involvement in peacekeeping, the article seeks to explains the rise of Ethiopia’s as a major actor in international peacekeeping since the early 2000s. It concludes by highlighting uncertainties facing Ethiopian peacekeeping due to regional complexities and political constraints resulting from internal conflicts.

Abstract Since its admission as a member of asean in 1997, the human rights situation in Myanmar has been a major concern of the organisation. asean has had to respond to external reactions and pressures calling for decisive action on various crises in Myanmar, notably the 2007 Saffron Revolution, the 2008 Cyclone Nargis humanitarian disaster, the clashes between Rakhine and Rohingya in 2012, and the military operations against the Rohingya in 2017. In the aftermath of the 1 February 2021 coup in Myanmar, asean once again confronts the challenge of expectations to prevent further atrocities in the country. Myanmar’s internal situation has occasioned debate on norms and principles in the asean Charter, and tested the limits of asean’s decision-making processes. Through its Myanmar experience, asean has set new precedents in its regional diplomacy toward defiant members. However, asean’s leverage and limitations in its Myanmar response will continue to be confined to the diplomatic, humanitarian and peaceful interventions related to the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) that are being currently employed in the post-2021 coup situation.

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Abstract Largely uncredited in public media and academic literature, the United Nations has used armed force frequently in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (drc), probably more than in any other UN peacekeeping operation. Though unheralded, this saved lives and protected cities and towns. However, attacks on civilians in drc are so frequent and widespread that many times the mission has been unable to respond in a timely fashion. To save more lives and gain trust in the local population, a much greater UN effort is needed to support robust measures, with more resources, determination and accountability (for inaction as well as action), even as “donor fatigue” sets in for a mission that has been operating since 1999. Still, it is important for peacekeeping as a whole to recognize and learn from cases of use of force against Congolese illegal armed groups (iag s), like the adf, cndp, fdlr, frpi, and M23. These cases show some remarkable successes, including removing some major poc threats, fracturing rebel groups, increasing UN deterrence, and enhancing the rule of law in the still untamed “Wild East” of the immense African country.

Abstract A prominent explanation of the rising attacks on aid workers is that aid workers in proximity to peacekeepers or soldiers of an intervention force are seen to be associated with them. This article leverages high-quality, disaggregated data collected by the UN about attacks on humanitarians in Darfur between January 2008 and March 2009 to examine this “blurring of the lines” explantion. We argue that rather than a blurred lines logic, spatial clustering of peacekeepers and humanitarians in a given area explains why aid workers are often attacked in proximity to peacekeepers. Consistent with this argument, we find that when controlling for humanitarian activity, the number of peacekeepers in an area is no longer significantly associated with attacks on aid workers. This study has important implications for current discussions on the relationship between humanitarians and peacekeepers and the concept of humanitarian space.

This year, 2022, marks the 25th anniversary of this peacekeeping journal.Peacekeeping has been the flagship of the United Nations and a unique tool of conflict resolution.As of summer 2022, there are approximately 90,000 peacekeepers serving in 12 UN peace operations around the world.Our authors have covered many aspects of these operations, ranging from the role of different troop-contributing countries to the law of peace operations and the complex question of how to evaluate the success of peacekeeping operations.Researchers from a range of disciplines including political scientists, legal scholars and practitioners from the field of peacekeeping operations are invited to submit articles to the Journal of International Peacekeeping.

Abstract Security sector reform and the protection of civilians are regular features within United Nations (UN) peace operations. However, the two areas are often distinct from one another in the mandates of missions. What then is the relationship between Security Sector Reform (ssr) and the Protection of Civilians (PoC) in contemporary missions and how does ssr impact PoC? This article aims to draw out this relationship by conducting a comparative case study analysis based on three missions that all combine a ssr and PoC mandate: the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (minusma), the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (minusca) and the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (monusco). The case studies provide a variety of examples which demonstrate elements of both convergence and divergence in the implementation of ssr and PoC. With ssr often taking place in a context of armed conflict, the current focus on human rights training and accountability is insufficient as the missions fail to achieve long-term ssr goals and instead must prioritise PoC due to the actions of the host states.

Abstract On 4 March 2013, when Kenyans participated in national presidential and legislative elections, there was wide-spread concern that the underling grievances that erupted during the 2007 and 2008 post-election violence would remerge. However, the polls were relatively peaceful in comparison. This case study will interrogate how mass atrocities were prevented in 2013 in Kenya, despite the prevalence of risk factors which could spark tensions and fuel violence. This article interrogates the local sources of resilience and inhibitors of atrocity crimes and considers the preventive actions that were undertaken and by whom, with a view to understanding what they achieved. In addition, it will assess the outcomes that were achieved as a result of these preventive actions. Through an evaluation of the preventive actions the article will examine which actions proved to be most effective in affecting the risks dynamics of the country in the short, medium and long-term. Kenya’s history of violence and failure to uphold accountability and redress for victims, meant that in 2013, it was significantly prone to the scourge of atrocity crimes. This analysis will draw out a number of key lessons for enhancing the prevention of atrocity crimes in the future.

Abstract After a United Nations peacekeeping mission introduced cholera to Haiti in 2010, victims have struggled for over a decade to obtain remedies from the UN. Their experiences have exposed the extraordinary barriers to justice faced by civilians who suffer injuries caused by UN operations. While the UN has enjoyed absolute immunity from suit in courts where personal injury claims are typically heard, the UN is required to provide civilians harmed by its operations with alternative avenues to seek redress. In practice, however, the UN’s process for resolving such third-party claims is opaque and difficult to access, and allows the UN to be the final arbiter of its own responsibility. Particularly troubling are recent mass tort cases where financial and political interests have improperly influenced the claims process to deny remedies. This article draws on personal insights gained from advocating for victims of cholera for the past ten years, as well as the parallel experiences of Roma, Ashkali, and Egyptian victims who brought claims against the UN for lead poisoning in Kosovo. The article identifies systemic weaknesses in the UN’s third-party claims process and proposes four key reforms to bring the organization’s practice in line with its legal and moral obligations.